The objectives of this research are to understand better how child language learners (of English/French or a 鈥渉eritage鈥� language) participate in an online environment (free iPad app and web site) that we have created (scribjab.com) that permits them to read and comment on multilingual stories written by others, and to contribute multilingual stories of their own, illustrate and orate these stories.
Utilizing a multilingual resource: Scribjab in action
Principal Investigator: Dr. Kelleen Toohey
Co-Investigators: Dr. Diane Dagenais
Funding Agency: SSHRC - 丁香园AV Institutional
What's Proposed
We are interested in how individual readers and groups access the app/website, what stories they tend to read, which stories they comment upon, and why they think they have been attracted to these stories. A second general question for us is how do children go about the creation of their stories: Is this a linear process wherein they first write, then illustrate and then orate the stories? Where do they get ideas for their stories? What is difficult about the site/app to use, and what recommendations do they have for further development of the site?
How This Project is Carried Out
We will observe the application in action in a school that enrolls English as an additional language learners. Our data will include videotapes of the children using the app and interviews with teachers and students.
Why This Project Matters
There is as yet no comprehensive theory about what technologies best aid language learners with language and literacy learning. We hope to contribute to theoretical discussions of thje properties of technologies that are facilitative.
Where to Learn More
Marshall, E. and Toohey, K. (2010) Representing family: Community funds of knowledge, bilingualism and multimodality. Harvard Educational Review 80 (2), 221-241